Eddie Alvarez possibly shelved until September 2014 due to court case

It’s been more than six months since lightweight Eddie Alvarez last saw action in a cage. Rather, the 29-year old’s recent battles have been fought inside a courtroom due to a nasty dose of litigation over his contractual freedom involving former employer Bellator. And, unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that will be changing at any point in the near future barring a settlement between the opposing sides.

The suit between Bellator and Alvarez was addressed earlier this week when documents were filed determining a pre-trial conference would not be on the court’s agenda until September…of next year! Based on the time required for jury selection and hearings, it is likely Alvarez would be left in limbo until early 2015.

Alvarez’s Bellator contract expired last year with the exception of a “right to match” clause. The 24-3 fighter was then offered a deal by the UFC including certain stipulations Bellator could not technically meet. However, the financial terms listed were copied, leading the promotion to believe Alvarez was obligated to re-sign and ultimately driving them to oppose their former champion’s ability to ink Zuffa’s proposal.